Vitreoscilla hemoglobin gene (vgb) improves lutein production in Chlorella vulgaris

Vitreoscilla hemoglobin is an oxygen-binding protein that promotes oxygen delivery and reduces oxygen consumption under low oxygen conditions to increase the efficiency of cell respiration and metabolism. In this study, we introduced a Vitreoscilla hemoglobin gene (vgb) into Chlorella vulgaris by Agrobacterium tumefaciens -mediated transformation (ATMT). PCR analysis confirmed that the vgb gene was successfully integrated into the Chlorella vulgaris genome. Analysis of biomass obtained in shake flasks revealed transformant biomass concentrations as high as 3.28 g/L, which was 38.81% higher than that of the wild-type strain. Lutein content of transformants also increased slightly. Further experiments recovered a maximum lutein yield of 2.91 mg/L from the transformants, which was 36.77% higher than that of the wild-type strain. The above results suggest that integrated expression of the vgb gene may improve cell growth and lutein yield in Chlorella vulgaris, with applications to lutein production from Chlorella during fermentation.